Slow life in Guangzhou's backyard! A 3-day, 2-night off-the-beaten-path guide to Conghua

Slow life in Guangzhou's backyard! Soak in forest hot springs, explore ancient village secrets, pick lychees and longans, all for about 600 RMB per person to enjoy a healing mountain escape♨️🌿🍈

Ladies! If you're suffocated by the 996 grind in downtown Guangzhou,
then you must escape this weekend to — Guangzhou·Conghua!

This is not some distant secret spot,
but a "Tropic of Cancer Oasis" hidden at 23.5°N latitude,
just 1.5 hours by car from Tianhe,
yet it offers:
✅ A nationally famous natural hot spring town,
✅ Millennium-old Hakka ancient villages and century-old residences,
✅ The joy of picking lychees in summer and red persimmons in autumn,
✅ A natural oxygen bar with over 80% forest coverage...

As a travel blogger who visits Conghua three times every summer,
today I bring you a super practical 【Conghua In-Depth Travel Guide】,
to help you escape the city heat and rediscover the breath of life among mountains and waters.

📍 Quick facts about Conghua
Location: Conghua District, Guangzhou City, Guangdong Province (suburban district)
Best travel time:
✅ Spring and autumn (March–May / September–November): pleasant climate, perfect for hiking and hot springs
🍓 Summer (June–August): lychee and longan picking season + top choice for summer cooling
❄️ Winter (December–February): peak hot spring season, warming body and soul
Recommended trip length: 2–3 days (ideal for a short micro-vacation)
Highlights:
"China’s Hot Spring Capital"
Crossed by the Tropic of Cancer
One of Guangzhou’s largest fruit-producing areas
Hakka cultural preservation area

🚆 How to get there?

✅ Self-driving (highly recommended! More freedom)
From Guangzhou: about 80 km, 1.5 hours
Navigation keywords: "Conghua Hot Spring Town," "Qiangang Ancient Village," "Xitou Village"

✅ Public transport
Metro Line 14 directly to [Conghua Bus Station] or [Dongfeng Station]
From the station, take a taxi or transfer to a bus to various attractions (some remote villages require chartered cars)

📌 Tip: Attractions in Conghua are scattered; self-driving or carpooling is more efficient!

🗓 Itinerary: 3-day, 2-night highlights route (perfect for first-time visitors)

✅ Day 1: First encounter with the mountains｜Hot spring healing + urban village local life

🕙 Afternoon: Arrive in Conghua → Check into a hot spring guesthouse♨️

📍 Recommended area: Songyuan Road in Hot Spring Town (classic hot spring core area)
🏡 Guesthouse types:
High-end: Bishuiwan Hot Spring Resort, Dusit Thani
Cost-effective: Private hot spring villas (with private pools, under 300 RMB in off-season)

🎯 Must-do:
Soak in natural hot spring water rich in metasilicic acid
Lie in the outdoor pool at night watching the stars, completely unwind

📸 Photo tips:
Wear a plain-colored bathrobe for a Japanese garden style;
Use bamboo blinds, stone lanterns, and greenery as background elements.

🌇 Evening: Stroll at [Riverside Park] or [Jiekou Night Market]
Riverside Park: a local favorite for walks, breeze along Liuxi River
Jiekou Night Market: a down-to-earth snack hub!

🍜 Must-try list:
Liuxi Guiwei lychee smoothie (summer exclusive)
Conghua Lütian braised pork (mountain flavor, rich but not greasy)
Ai rice cake (mugwort fragrance + peanut filling, soft and fresh)
Roast meat stall char siu rice (15 RMB per person to eat until full)

✅ Day 2: Nature blast day｜Explore millennium-old village + hike the most beautiful rural trail

🌞 Morning: Visit [Qiangang Ancient Village]🏯

📌 Founded in the Song Dynasty, over 800 years old, one of Guangzhou’s best-preserved Hakka walled villages.

🎯 Must-see:
Walk through [Guangyu Ancestral Hall] — a nationally protected cultural site, winner of a UNESCO heritage protection award
Climb the [Watchtower] to overlook the village layout, with blue bricks and black tiles laid out like a chessboard
Find the beauty in details like "carved door lintels" and "courtyard drainage system"

📷 Photo hotspot! Every shot captures the Lingnan ancient charm!

📌 Tip: Free admission, but please keep quiet and respect the peaceful atmosphere.

🌲 Noon: Hike the [Xitou Village—Jin Village Ancient Trail]🌿

📌 Known as "Guangdong’s most beautiful rural hiking trail," about 6 km long, moderate difficulty.

🎯 Highlights along the way:
Bamboo paths, babbling streams, golden rice fields
Pass by century-old Fengshui Bridge, stone mill, old waterwheel
Pick seasonal fruits along the way (pay by weight)

🎯 If you don’t want to hike the full trail, just explore [Xitou Village]:
Drink herbal tea under a century-old banyan tree at the village entrance
Buy handmade tofu pudding at a farmhouse shop
Chat with villagers: "Grandma, did you pick lychees today?" (Bonus points for Cantonese!)

🌇 Evening: Stay overnight at a Xitou Village guesthouse or return to Hot Spring Town accommodation

Recommended: farmhouse guesthouses with courtyards, fall asleep to insect sounds, wake up to birdsong.

✅ Day 3: Countryside finale｜Fruit picking + souvenir shopping before heading back

🌅 Early morning: Head to [Taiping Town/Aotou Town orchards] to pick fruit🍓🍇

📌 Conghua is China’s lychee hometown and an important production area for longan, wampee, and dragon fruit!

🎯 Seasonal guide:
Time Recommended fruit
------ ----------
Late May–mid June Early lychee (Feizixiao)
Mid June–mid July Guiwei, Nuomici (sweeter than Sanya!)
July–August Longan, dragon fruit
September–October Wampee, red persimmon

💰 Price reference: lychee 20–30 RMB/kg, longan 15–20 RMB/kg, on-site packing and shipping available

🎯 Family must-do:
Let kids climb trees to pick fruit themselves, a true "countryside education" experience.

🛍️ Morning: Buy Conghua specialties as souvenirs🎁

✅ Must-buy list:
Souvenir Features
-------- --------
Fresh lychee/longan Vacuum-packed + foam box, SF Express cold chain delivery nationwide
Lütian dried tofu Smoked flavor, chewy texture
Ai rice cake Frozen for preservation, steam at home to eat
Mountain honey Local beekeeper’s pure product, no additives
Hot spring mineral soap Contains metasilicic acid, good for skin care

📌 Tip: Jiekou farmers’ market offers the best prices, don’t buy at scenic spots!

🚗 Return trip or extend with a day tour: Shimen National Forest Park (best for autumn foliage viewing)

🍜 Conghua food map｜Low-key but stunning northern Guangdong mountain flavors

Category Must-try dishes Recommended places
------ -------------- --------------
Main meals Lütian braised pork, mud-baked chicken, reservoir fish Farmhouses, Xitou Village restaurants
Staple foods Mountain snail porridge, bamboo tube rice Mountain-side shops, farmhouses
Snacks Ai rice cake, tofu pudding, sugar glutinous balls Street stalls, market food carts
Drinks Homemade lychee juice, herbal tea Orchard entrances, herbal tea shops

📌 Hidden gems:
Lütian braised pork is slow-cooked over firewood for 3 hours, melts in your mouth
Mud-baked chicken: whole chicken wrapped in yellow clay and roasted, bursting with aroma when torn open!

💰 📊 Total budget list (per person for 3 days, 2 nights)

Item Cost
------ ----
Round-trip transport (from Guangzhou city center) 100 RMB (fuel/toll shared)
Accommodation (2 nights hot spring/guesthouse) 400 RMB (200×2)
Food (6 main meals + snacks) 200 RMB
Attraction tickets (mostly free) 50 RMB (orchard picking + guide fee)
Local transport (taxi + car rental) 100 RMB
Souvenirs/others 50 RMB
Total About 900 RMB

✅ Student budget optimization:
Stay in hostels or shared rooms (80 RMB/night × 2 = 160 RMB)
Bring your own snacks to cover some meals
Skip non-essential expenses
Final cost can be controlled under: 580 RMB per person!

🎉 Conclusion: For under 600 RMB per person, you can truly enjoy a wild and authentic experience!

🔥 Pitfall tips｜Local honest advice

❌ Don’t buy “wild honey” from roadside stalls! Often mixed with syrup, better to buy from official apiaries
❌ Don’t soak in hot springs too long to avoid dizziness, limit to 20 minutes each time, drink plenty of water
❌ Some parts of Xitou Village have weak signal, download offline maps in advance
❌ Want to join folk activities? Check lunar calendar festivals (e.g., Dragon Boat Festival rice dumplings, Winter Solstice rice cakes)
✅ Must-have skills:
Download "Amap" for navigation
Bring sunscreen + mosquito repellent (mountain forests are humid with many insects)
Learn a Cantonese phrase: "Do jeh sai!" (Thank you!)

🌟 One last word:

Many think Conghua is just a "hot spring spot,"
but when you hear elders telling ancestral stories in Qiangang Ancient Village,
when you bite into a freshly picked lychee by the rice fields in Xitou Village,
when you soak in hot springs at night and look up at the starry sky...

At that moment you’ll understand:
This is not just travel,
but finding the long-lost true flavor of life
in Guangzhou’s backyard garden.

So, if you’re tired of concrete and fast pace,
come to Conghua.
Here,
the mountains are close, the water is clear, and life is slow.💚🍃🌞